8/14/12

Everitte Barbee is a U.S. citizen who grew up in Nashville, Tennessee.
He’s also a calligraphy artist. About a year and a half ago, the
24-year-old commenced work on a unique project: The Quran for Solidarity
is, as far as Barbee is aware, the first Quran to be completely
handwritten by a non-Muslim. He also believes it may be the first
edition of the book entirely written in figurative calligraphy.

“I don’t know of any other non-Muslims to write the entire Quran by
hand,” Barbee, who currently lives in Beirut, told The Daily Star. “I
[also] don’t know of another Quran written completely in pictures, in
actual figurative designs ... Normally it’s just linear text.”

Knowledge of Arabic and Chinese may help the viewer access added joys
— tilt your head to the left and a Chinese character for “peace” gives
way to a cursive Arabic salaam — but even those who do not read either language can appreciate the beauty of Noor Deen’s work.